[ q series ]

Around the year 2000, I had the idea of a new sound in my head. I wanted to bring together the charm of many older Spanish guitars and the power and sustain that new methods make possible.

Many players, like me, do not like guitars that are heavy and sit like elephants on your leg. Many do not like a sound that is too “pingy”. Nobody wants to make music on a machine gun. (Or maybe some do, what do I know) Power without charm is ugly, and charm without power is no longer desirable. So, this was the challenge – to combine the best sound qualities in a pleasing way. To some extent, this is the holy grail, and the goal is elusive, but we can still do the best we can.

It took me far longer than I expected to develop the Q Series, because it is a very complicated guitar and the construction particularly demanding.

Like a number of modern guitars, the soundboard is thin, but made of solid wood. The rest of the body is stiff, but light in weight to conserve the energy by reflecting it back into the soundboard. The neck mechanism alone gradually evolved over a period of 2 years, so now the neck is adjustable and, if necessary, completely removable. The guitar body will fit into a cabin bag for traveling by plane.

I usually build the body from rosewood, but I also now offer non-tropical woods as alternatives. There is no audible difference in the sound. So, what of the sound? It is unique. I find it beautiful. One guitarist told me the Q has a built-in cathedral. I like the image. I am still working on the cathedral. I could use lots of words to try to describe the sound, but the only good way is to play one.